On The Phone
by Tenchi Knight
Summary: Tired of the phone ringing and interrupting his work, Ben yelled at the caller only to find out it was someone in dire need of a friend... BenXGwen


On The Phone

Disclaimer: I don't own Ben 10 and am receiving no compensation for my works.

Author's Note: This is set in the Ben 10: Alien Force timeline just because I need certain characters.

"Let's see..." Ben said. "On September forth, eighteen seventy, Napoleon Bonaparte..."

Ben stopped his recitation as he heard the phone ring and sighed as he reached over and pressed the talk button.

"Hello?" He said.

"Hello, is this Benjamin Tennyson?" A cheerful voice asked.

"Depends... who's asking?" He asked, holding his forehead.

"My name is Melanie and I'm with the Colorado Survey Bureau and I have a few questions I want to ask you..." She  
said with a practiced air.

"No and tell your people to stop calling me." He said harshly and then hangs up. "Now, on September forth,  
eighteen seventy..."

The phone rang again and Ben groaned as he pressed the talk button.

"Hello?" He said, dreading what he will hear.

"Buenos días, habla Sandra de la compania Swan en Denver. ¿Se encuentra la Señora Mendez?" A woman said in  
Spanish.

"Me llamo Ben Tennyson. Señora Méndez no vive aquí. Por favor, dejen de llamar aquí." He ended the call and  
sighed heavily. "I'm glad I paid attention in Spanish class."

He looked back at his paper that he is writing.

"In Eighteen..."

The phone rang again and he growled as he jabbed his finger at the talk button.

"What is it with you people calling me?" He demanded.

"Ben?" Gwen said softly, her voice full of hurt.

"Gwen!" Ben exclaimed.

"I..." She said and then quickly hung up.

"Shit!" He exclaimed, jumping up and running downstairs.

"Where are you going?" Ben's mother, Sandra Tennyson, asked as she heard her son run down the stairs like a man  
possessed.

"I have to get to Gwen's house." Ben said, glancing at the door furtively.

"Go." She said, seeing he was almost incapable of slowing down, and he ran out without another word. As he  
reached the street, he triggered his Omnitrix and switched it to XLR8. With a silent prayer, he slammed his hand  
on the button and is rewarded with a transformation into the strange humanoid-reptilian creature he calls XLR8.  
With a grimace and a burst of speed, he shot off down the road, pushing himself to the breaking point to reach  
the one person who he truly counts as a friend.

NINETY SECONDS LATER...

Ben deactivated the Omnitrix a few blocks short of his destination and with a grunt of determination ran the last few  
blocks and leapt over the white picket fence that surrounded their quaint suburban rambler. As he jogged to the door,  
he wondered to himself just how it would appear with him showing up on the doorstep looking winded as he was but  
then he dismissed this thought and knocked on the door. Ben glanced back over his shoulder, and then turned back  
as he heard the door open.

"Ben?" Frank said, confused by the presence of the boy.

"Can I see Gwen?" He asked.

"Sure... come in... she's up in her room..." He said, stepping aside. Ben walked in and immediately made his way up  
the stairs and down the hall to Gwen's room. As he reached the door, he again was assailed by a fear of the  
unknown, but cast this aside and with confidence lifted his hand and solidly rapped three times. A tense thirty  
seconds passed before he heard anything.

"Come in..." Gwen said softly. Ben reached out with a tentative hand, then shoring his back he turned the knob and  
pushed the door inward, stepping in and closing it once more.

"Gwen..." He said softly. Gwen jerked and flipped over to look at him with a hurt expression.

"What are you doing here?!" She demanded. "Get out!"

"No, Gwen." He said calmly. "I won't get out until I've explained myself..."

"There's nothing to explain!" She shouted.

"The phone had been ringing non-stop all night and I was angry... I'm sorry I yelled at you... I shouldn't have... I  
don't know why you're so upset... but if you'd be willing to tell me I'd be more than happy to listen..." He said as he  
stepped closer to her. She glared at him for a long moment and then sighed heavily.

"Kevin dumped me..." She said softly. "He said I wasn't pretty enough for him..."

"Kevin is a moron." Ben said soundly. "The only thing he's done right is choose you in the first place. You're a  
smart, beautiful young woman and any man would be lucky to be with you."

"Do you really think that?" She asked, touched by his sincerity.

"Yeah." He said.

"Thanks Ben. Of course coming from you..." She said, smiling softly.

"What?" He asked, confused.

"Well, it's nice to hear from you... but you're you..." She said.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Well you're my cousin."

"So?"

"So you're supposed to be nice to me. It's just like me and my brother, Ken."

"No, Gwen, it's not." Ben said. "Yes, I'm your cousin but it doesn't mean I have to be nice to you. I'm nice to you  
because I choose to be."

She looked at him with a confused expression as he spoke.

"I'm nice to you because it feels right, because if I'm mean to you I immediately hate myself. I'm nice to you  
because I want you to be happy." He said with steely determination.

"Thank you, Ben." She said.

"Gwen, I'd give up the world for you..." He said, making her balk. "All those times when we faced Vilgax and the  
DNAliens and the Highbreed... if I ever thought you would be hurt, I would hurdle myself into the fight to protect  
you. I was willing to die so that you would live because I care about you, Gwen."

"You... you care about me?"

"Yes." He said.

"But Ben..."

"I know." He said. "Society may say what we can do, but not how we feel and I will always care about you, Gwen."

She looked at him for a long moment before stepping over to him and embracing him gently.

"I care about you too, Ben." She said softly.

"You do?" He asked. His eyes wide with shock.

"I do." She said, then leaned forward and kissed him softly on the corner of the mouth. He stared at her for a long  
moment before leaning in kissing her back, his arms wrapping around her and holding her close. They stayed like  
this for a long moment until they heard a knock at the door.

"Gwen? Ben? Can I come in?" Lily said and the pair quickly separated as the door opened. "Gwen... I heard you  
shouting... is everything all right?"

"Yeah..." Gwen said.

"We just had a misunderstanding." Ben said. "But we got it settled..."

"Honey... when you came home today..." Lily started.

"Mom... Kevin dumped me..." Gwen said, feeling the agony welling up within her soul all over again.

"Oh, honey... why?"

"He said she wasn't pretty enough." Ben said coldly. "Idiot."

"He really said that, honey?"

"Yeah..." Gwen said.

"Gwen called me up and I'd been dealing with writing a paper and idiots calling me all night so when she called me,  
I just snapped without even saying hello... she said my name and then hung up and so I ran here..." Ben said.

"Is that why you were yelling at him?" Lily asked.

"Yeah... I was hurt and angry that he'd yell at me like that but he explained what happened and apologized..." Gwen  
said.

"Oh." Lily said. "So everything's better now?"

The cousins nodded their heads in concert.

"Good." She said. "Then I'm going to go back downstairs..."

She turned and walked out of the room, pulling the door closed behind her.

"Ben... I wanted to tell you... I'm sorry that I blew up at you. I shouldn't have yelled at you like I did..." Gwen said.

"Already forgiven." Ben said.

"Thank you." Gwen said, and hugged Ben gently. He stood there for a moment before smiling and returning the hug  
warmly, his hand stroking her back softly. Gwen leaned back a bit and looked at Ben for a moment before leaning in  
and tenderly pressing her lips to his in a brief yet sweet kiss. She leans back and gazes into his eyes for a long  
moment. He then leans forward and gives her a soft kiss on the lips... longer than the first... then they break apart  
once more and look at each other. Moments later, they move together and their lips press tightly, the moment taking  
over.

DOWNSTAIRS...

"Are you sure that she's all right?" Gwen's father, Frank, asked.

"Yes, honey, I'm sure." Gwen's mother, Lily, answered.

"How are you sure?" Frank asked.

"Ben's up there." Lily said. "They might fight like cats and dogs, but deep down it's obvious he cares deeply about  
her and would do anything to protect her."

ELSEWHERE...

"What the hell..." Kevin said, glancing at his workbench. He walked over and touched a small device that was  
sitting on the surface and watched as a map appeared. "Shit!"

He grabbed the device, jumped into his car, and peeled out of the driveway at break-neck speeds.

TEN MINUTES LATER...

Kevin Levin pulled up outside the Tennyson home and parked his car. He climbed out and walked to the front door  
before knocking soundly. The door opened and he looked in at Frank Tennyson whose face immediately darkened.

"What do you want, Kevin?" Frank asked.

"I need to talk to Gwen." Kevin said. "It's important."

"I don't think that now is the best time, Kevin. After all, you did just break up with her." Frank said.

"Look, I don't have time for this." Kevin said. "I need to talk to Gwen now. It's an emergency."

Frank looked at him for a long moment and then sighed. "She's up in her room with Ben."

Kevin stepped around Frank, and then quickly made his way up the stairs and down the hall to Gwen's room. As his  
hand touched the doorknob, he stopped as he heard a soft sigh. He leaned forward and put his ear to the door, his  
eyes going wide as he heard another sigh. With a quick twist and a sharp push, the door swung open and Kevin's  
jaw fell open as Gwen—shirt half unbuttoned—and Ben—shirt completely unbuttoned—moved away from one  
another, their cheeks flushed red.

"What the hell..." Kevin said. He stood there, his mind unable to compute the situation he just witnessed.

"KEVIN! GET OUT OF MY ROOM!" Gwen screamed. Kevin fell back and looked to his right just in time to see  
Frank reach the top of the stairs with an angry expression. He turned back to the room and gulped as he saw Ben  
walking toward him.

"I'm gonna beat the snot out of you, Kevin." Ben growled.

Frank stopped as Ben stepped into the hallway—his shirt still unbuttoned—and grabbed Kevin by his collar.

"Ben? Why is your shirt unbuttoned?" Frank asked.

Ben looked to his left at Frank and then down at his shirt.

"Shit." Ben said.

"Kevin: go sit in the living room. Ben: Go down there as well." Frank said and walked around Ben and glanced into  
Gwen's room where she is hastily finishing buttoning her shirt. "Gwendolyn: go join Ben and Kevin in the living  
room. Your mother and I are going to have a little chat with you three about this whole situation."

Gwen walked out of her room and down the stairs, followed a second behind by her father who walked into the  
kitchen where Lily was washing some dishes. As Gwen walked into the living room, she saw Ben and Kevin glaring  
at one another. Kevin looked over at her and his face became a mask of disgust.

"Hey!" Ben barked. "Don't look at her like that."

"Disgusting," Kevin said.

"Watch it before I go Big Chill and freeze your ass." Ben growled.

"Bring it, Tennyson." Kevin challenged.

"Enough!" Frank snapped, drawing all attention to him. "Time for some rules: No cross-chatter, no talking without  
being addressed, and no mean-mugging. Is that understood?"

The three teens nod their heads.

"Good. Now Kevin, what is so important that you felt it necessary to barge in like you did?" Frank asked.

"It's nothing." Kevin said.

"Bullshit!" Frank barked and the three jumped at the epithet. "Why?"

"Plumber business," Kevin said. "I got a hit on a possible energy signature."

"Gwen: what was going on when Kevin barged into your room?" Frank asked.

"Well... Ben and I were... that is... um..." She trailed off, a blush coloring her cheeks.

"I see." He said. "Ben: what do you have to say for yourself?"

"I would sooner die than see her hurt." Ben said. "She's special to me in ways I can't even begin to explain."

"So that's why your shirt was open like that?" Frank asked.

"Well... no..." Ben said. "Actually Gwen likes my muscle definition..."

Lily looked over at her daughter who blushed harder. Frank just stood there for a long moment before asking his  
next question... one he is unsure if he wants to know the answer to...

"Would you have stopped if you hadn't been interrupted?" Frank asked.

"Yes." Ben said without hesitation.

"Why?" Frank asked.

"I'd want everything to be perfect... including your permission for us to be together... before I'd move forward." Ben  
said.

"Well said, Benjamin." Frank said. "Now, I want you three to listen to me very carefully. Kevin: If you come to my  
home again, you will respect it and those who live here. You will respect their privacy, and that includes knocking  
before entering a room where the door is closed. What more, you will show respect in restraining your words. I  
heard what you said about the two of them and I do not approve. I'm sure you can handle the plumber business by  
yourself. For now, you are unwelcome here. Please leave. Call in a couple weeks to see if I've changed my mind."

Kevin stood, nodded, and then walked out without another word.

"Now for you two..." Frank said and they gulped in unison. "Open door policy. If you two are in a room together,  
the door stays open. Next: no fighting in the house and that includes going Big Chill and freezing your opponents. I  
don't want to deal with de-icing the house. Finally, I would like to tell you something I never thought I would say to  
you, Ben: You have my permission to date Gwen."

"Thank you." Ben said.

"Oh, and Gwen?" Frank said and Gwen turned her attention to her father. "You're grounded for a week for making  
out with Ben."

Gwen's jaw dropped open from surprise.

"Frank..." Lily said.

"Fine..." Frank said. "You're not grounded... just next time you two decide to make out, keep your clothing on."

"Ok, dad." Gwen said.

"Now can you two please explain just how this all happened?" Frank asked.

"Well," Ben said, "It started when I was working on a paper for school and was sick and tired of people calling me  
and keeping me on the phone..."

THE END

Author's Notes: Yeah, I know it's abrupt but that's the way things go. This was just a bunny that I decided to turn  
into a story and this is where it ended. Thanks to Anime Apothecary for his tireless efforts in beta reading and all my  
loyal readers who keep me well supplied with reviews! You're all awesome!

TK


End file.
